Something to Lose
by Black-anathema
Summary: When Max helps a prisoner escape from a gang of cannibals, he gets more than he bargained for. Now hes stuck with a stubborn companion he never wanted, that is until things go horribly wrong and he needs her help. Will his feelings for her get in the way, or will they be just what is needed for them to make it out alive? OC/Max pairing. Takes place between Road Warrior and BTD.
1. A world gone mad

The sun beat down on the desolate sands relentlessly, as though trying to conquer an old foe. Somewhere in the distance engines roared with life.

"We can't stay here. They've found us. Get up." You grumble a protest and go back to sleep. It had been so long since you found a decently shaded area to rest.

"Get up." There was that voice again. " _Get UP_!"

The urgency of the words finally set in, sending your heart racing, and mind into overdrive. You got up in a flourish of ragged and dirty clothes, the blood rushing to your head made the world appear to tilt and turn, leaving you momentarily dizzy. Shaking your head to clear your vision, you scrambled to gather your scattered supplies. Normally you were a very tidy person, keeping your things stashed on the back of your dirty, battered Yamaha; the black paint had faded and worn in some areas, and scratched in others. When you had found the over hanging cliff it seemed like an ideal place to rest, given that it was perched high up on some rocky cliffs and surrounded by canyon.

* * *

The horde of monstrous vehicles raced forward, as though driven by some common goal, kicking up a mini sandstorm in their wake. As they neared the canyon, a small cloud of dust picked up, indicating the exact location of their prey.

A cacophony of indistinguishable cheers and war cries rose up. "Look, Mistress!" cried one of the Street Breed warriors, a scrawny man with the look of hunger in his eyes, and blood on his lips. Glancing in the direction he pointed out, a grin stretched across Mistress's lips, showing a mouthful of sharp teeth, filed down to look like that of shark teeth.

"Dinner time, boys!" she bellowed to the skies, rifle gripped by the barrel and raised above her head.

* * *

 _Heres a bit of an introductory chapter for my OCs. Is there a character you want to see? Then p_ _lease leave reviews, and/or suggestions for upcoming chapters!_


	2. Chapter 2: Their Fallen Mark

The shouts grew louder and louder until they echoed off the rocky cliff faces, sounding as though they were far closer than they could possibly be. There was no possible way they were here yet. Shifting down, you banked a sharp turn, narrowly avoiding an unsightly death with a mountain of serrated rocks. The canyon walls were known for being rough, and yet smooth, worn down by eons of wind-whipped sand, and earthquakes ripping stone from stone. Natural disasters were the least of your worries, at least on the good days, and those good days consisted of not being hunted down. Today was not a good day.

There was no telling if your pursuers were gaining ground, or if the canyon walls continued to deceive you, sending their war cries bouncing around until they reached your ears. Just ahead of you there was a sloping curve in the path. Recognizing it for the route you took to get here, there was no doubt in your mind that it would be the safest way out, for it was sheltered by a canopy of dead trees. Their roots and branches intertwining to form a kind of ceiling for nearly 500 yards before the path dipped underground, coming back up outside of the canyon walls.

The was no question about it now, they were closer than before. Now inside the canyon, their engines rang louder than the war cries.

As you neared the sheltered passage an explosion, followed by a wave of heat and wind knocked you backwards, off your bike. For what felt like a brief moment and yet the longest period of time, you flew through the air before coming to land in a heap against a craggy wall. Pain sliced like a knife through the back of your head. Opening your eyes, you watched, to the best of your abilities, through blurry vision, as the dead trees burned and collapsed, falling on a mound of rocks that now blocked all chances of escaped through the the passage. Laying on the hard ground seemed like a brilliant idea after you attempted to sit up, and nausea forced you back to the ground. Either way, getting up was of no use, your bike had your lower half pinned.

* * *

Mistress and her Street Breed gang were closing in on their prey. One of her scouts had gone ahead, and judging by the sound of the explosion, something had either gone very wrong, or very right.

Rounding the bend, they were greeted with the sight of the burning pass, and their fallen quarry. The whooping and cheers ricocheted off the walls, creating an earsplitting raucous. "Gather what you can. " Mistress cried above the noise, as she climbed out of her own dune buggy, careful to avoid the twisted, serrated metal spikes that had been welded to the frame. She approached you from behind, weary of any futile attempts to escape her now. Coming to face you, she squatted just out of arms reach and watched as the fear registered in your eyes, and your breathing became labored from struggling to free yourself.

"And you," she cast a sharp glance at her ecstatic Street Breed warriors, chattering away while they picked through your things. A fight had broken out over your leather satchel and shiny hip flask, "I'm so glad we could meet again, Bones."


	3. Chapter 3: Horrible News

It had been days since the 'Mistress' took a handful of her men out to hunt and grab supplies, and they were due back any time now. Max overheard this splendid news the first night when he was attacked, from his captors. Captors who, despite their wiry muscle, looked very hungry. But then again, everyone was hungry these days. Anyone would be lucky if they stumbled upon an old rusted can of dog chow and some dirty water, that could potentially be radioactive or full of parasites.

He thought he had been safe, parking his black-on-black on high ground, surrounded by boulders, dead trees, and dried up bushes. Max had even scouted and checked it out from multiple angles and distances, to see if there was a chance of anyone seeing him or his car. As far as he was aware, it would be a perfectly safe place to sleep for the night, or maybe even a few days if things looked promising.

But safety was just an illusion.

He'd been on his way back from investigating a rather small body of dirty water when he was blindsided by a blunt object. Luckily for Max, he had been nowhere near his car when these guys had attacked. If they had struck while he was in or near his Interceptor, they would have striped it down for parts and petrol...or at least they would have if he didn't have C4 rigged up to the gas tanks, just in case anyone but him touched them, without his consent.

Now, as Max sat chained to a stone wall inside a surprisingly cool cave, three things were made clear.

First: The Mistress was bringing back another person, not an animal, and not supplies.

Second: They were cannibals.

And third: He was dinner.

Those that had tried to touch him were beaten. And those that tried to give him water had their legs broken. Drinkable water was scarce enough as it is, without empathetic cannibals trying to water you. What was the point of taking care of your food source when you were going to kill and eat it the next day, or even that very night?

Every one of them seemed to be on edge, anticipating the return of their leader, and the 'feast' that was promised to them.

* * *

 _*Author's Note*_

 _Thanks for all the reviews you guys, keep them coming! And thank you for being patient with me, this chapter has taken longer than it should, and is far shorter than I meant for it to be. It was going to be longer but I've got a bit of writer's block at the moment. Ill try to make up for the shortness of this one, with the next chapter being hopefully twice as long!_

 _Thanks again!_


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